If you have visions of having a successful career; working in a range of industries, companies and even countries. If you dream of working on the most exciting projects and enjoying every minute of it then you probably think you will have to have a good university degree to enable you to do this – even to have the possibility of doing this. But think again – careers are no longer as traditional as they once were – there are opportunities in jobs that didn’t exist a decade ago and even in traditional roles the way we view a career has changed.

Take apprenticeships for example – they used to be viewed as a way to train tradespeople – a slightly less academic choice of career. Yet now we have Higher apprenticeships such as the project management apprenticeship that results in a degree level qualification. Even in more traditional professions such as accountancy and engineering it is necessary to continue to take training courses and develop your skills and expertise throughout your career.

You make think this means endless classroom sessions and exams but, in fact, there are so many innovative ways to learn now (from e-learning to videos and podcasts) that learning genuinely can be fun. And, even better, it will help your career if you have the best professional qualifications. A project manager apprentice will gain internationally recognised credentials which are the same as those taken by project managers coming through the degree route and then working in a particular industry for a few years before moving into a PM role, So the APMP exam (now known as the APM Project Management Qualification (AMP PMQ) and the higher levels of the APM exams are all open to a PM apprentice.

More about project management apprenticeships:

A debt-free route into project management –going to university is a very expensive route to a great career and no longer needed. There are plenty of project management training courses and apprenticeships that can help you avoid a large student debt and the worry of paying off a student loan once you start earning.

Professional guidance readily available – with an apprenticeship programme you get support and guidance from experienced professionals throughout your career.

Internationally recognised qualifications – such as the APM PMQ (formerly APMP) and the higher level of APM accreditation right up to chartered status.

Establish a network of contacts – An apprenticeship will help you build a network of contacts that could be advantageous to your career.

Enhance your CV – Good qualifications will always boost a CV and ones that combine practical skills and experience with prestigious qualifications are ideal.

Improve your job prospects – apprenticeships often lead to a permanent job but failing that you will have the right skills and credentials to more easily find the right job for you.

About Our Blog

Small business owners can often struggle to get their business off the ground and start making a profit. We believe that businesses often fail because they have not taken the right approach to marketing – after all we all know it is not because of bad products or services that businesses don't succeed. So here on this blog we like to just provide some tips and advice for small businesses (including our accumulated knowledge) on how to get your marketing right. Because you can always learn lessons from other people's mistakes and sometimes it's good just to chat – a problem shared and all that. We also cover topics such as project management to help you run your projects and business more efficiently and occasionally discuss technology as you simply can't run a business without the right tech. We cover training and coaching for business owners that can give you a better chance of succeeding first time round and how to get a blog started - one of the easiest, quickest and most effective ways to promote yourself and your business online.

But a successful small business is not all about the right marketing approach so we also discuss cost-saving efficiencies particularly when it comes to staff and premises. Too many small businesses take on the big financial commitment of a swish new office and expensive warehousing facilities when there are much more cost-effective options for businesses such office space in a small business hub or self-storage instead of a warehouse. Equally it is no longer necessary to take on all staff as permanent employees as many people prefer the flexibility of freelance work and remote working.

So join us by commenting on anything that strikes a chord with you – we love to hear other people's opinions and if you have a small business success story to share we would be particularly interested to hear about it.